


Importance and Earnestness

by Robin_Lan



Category: Pride and Prejudice, The Importance Of Being Earnest
Genre: Gen, Snark, i wrote this for an assignment in my Hon. Brit Drama Class, so I wouldn’t have to write a Macbeth essay, this is just fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-12-26 07:37:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18278741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Robin_Lan/pseuds/Robin_Lan
Summary: Elizabeth Bennet visits an old friend in Hertfordshire.





	Importance and Earnestness

**Author's Note:**

> I love these two books, um, but I’m still in the middle of P&P despite the fact that it’s my favorite novel of all time.

It was summer when Elizabeth visited Hertfordshire once again, her countryside home. Though, she was not to visit family. She already saw Jane and Kitty quite enough, and she saw Lydia far too often in her opinion. Instead, she was called upon to visit a childhood friend, a Mr. Worthing, whom she was quite close to. He seems to have recently gotten into a spot of trouble, and wished to recount his experiences to his dear friend from youth over tea. 

When Elizabeth received the letter she perused it quite a few times, not out of the affection of hearing from a dear held friend, but rather, with confusion. At the end of the letter, where one would usually his own name, Elizabeth found a strange occurrence. It was signed by a Mr. Ernest Worthing, all things considered it isn’t out of place. Her friend had often told her about his brother, Ernest, who was apparently an invalid, although, Lizzy had her own suspicions about the verity of that claim. He appeared to be far too sick far too often and far too conveniently. However, what confused Elizabeth was the handwriting of the script itself. Despite the difference in name, the style and penmanship matched that of her friend’s. Sloppy words disguised by fancy letters, a script symbolic of Jack, whom she knew all too well as a silly man who tried to put on a somber, serious front in front of his ward. 

Upon breaching that subject, Elizabeth made a note to check in on Miss Cardew, who is soon reaching a marriageable age. Elizabeth hopes that, though as silly as he is, Mr. Worthing is not quite so… eager upon the subject of marriage as Elizabeth’s own mother was. 

Her carriage pulled up on the estate of Mr. Worthing. Her home was not far, but Mr. Worthing asked that she would arrive with most haste. It seemed that almost as soon asp she arrived at the front, the door opened and out came a peculiar man, one whom she had never seen before, but bore quite a resemblance to Mr. Worthing. Although, the man seemed rather enraptured by the presence of the young girl beside him, whom Elizabeth did indeed recognize as Cecily Cardew, Mr. Worthing’s ward. The two conversed, seemingly caught up in a world of their own, not noticing the third who had just arrived until the man turned, quite reluctantly, Elizabeth noted, to leave. 

The man let out a surprised yelp, quite unbefitting of his seemingly high stature, if to be judged based on his dress. He, like Mr. Worthing, also seemed to be a quite silly man. Elizabeth, however, caught her thoughts, chastising herself for making such quick judgements, which have already gotten her into a spot of trouble. The man apologized for his sudden surprise and introduced himself as a Mr. Algernon Moncrieff, and likewise, Elizabeth introduced herself, though, with the use of her maiden name to see if Mr. Worthing was expecting her. Despite having her back turned, Miss Cardew whipped around at the sound of such a familiar name, and regarded a woman with an equally familiar face. She rushed out the door, earning another surprised yelp from Mr. Moncrieff and embraced Elizabeth, whom Miss Cardew had not seen since she was much, much smaller, and not of equivalent height, in a hug. 

Eliza returned the younger woman’s regard, less excitedly, but nonetheless still affectionate. The two quickly began conversing, Elizabeth curious about the matters of Hertfordshire in general from her absence, and Miss Cardew inquiring about from whom the ring on Eliza’s finger was given. Elizabeth was about to answer when Mr. Moncrieff interrupted the two with a “You two seem to know each other quite well”

“Oh yes, Algie,” Elizabeth noted the affection in her regard to Mr. Moncrieff, “when I was younger she was a dear friend to my guardian.” Miss Cardew responded. “Lizzy, have you met my soon to be husband, Mr. Moncrieff, yet?” 

Elizabeth was quite stunned, it had not been that long ago, when in her correspondence of letter with Mr. Worthing, that he had mentioned that Miss Cardew had not yet met a suitor, and now suddenly, she was already engaged. Elizabeth had grown to be wary of hasty marriages, but, reminding herself of her recent self-admonishment, kept her judgments weighed against more sufficient evidence. “Why, yes, we had just introduced ourselves. I must wonder why, Jack had not mentioned the fact that you were engaged in his most recent letter, although, I must surmise that this must have been the purpose of his summons.” 

“Oh, yes! He has been expecting you for quite a while, but that is not quite the main purpose behind his call. Shall I lead you inside to him?” Elizabeth agreed, and, after another round of affectionate good-byes and long, wonderstruck gazes between Miss Cardew and Mr. Moncrieff, Elizabeth was led inside to the parlor, as Miss Cardew went to fetch Mr. Worthing, who had arrived shortly thereafter with tea. 

Elizabeth and Mr. Worthing exchanged greetings as Miss Cardew left them to tea. The shift in Jack was almost immediately apparent. The stuffy, somber, even-tempered Mr. Worthing shifted to the quick, gregarious, and silly Jack that Elizabeth knew from childhood. A small conversation emerged as they drank, the usual inquires about how the Bennets were doing (“Jane, Lydia, and myself have gotten married, my mother’s nerves are just as ‘long-suffering’ as ever, Father is just as bookish as ever, and Kitty is growing up quite well.) before getting to the meat of the issue, the “spot of trouble” that was apparently so urgent as to call Elizabeth to his estate to explain. However, it seemed as if Elizabeth was to one who breached that subject, not Jack. 

“Well, since I have told you about my sisters, I believe it is only fair for you to tell me about your brother. How is Ernest doing, Jack?” Elizabeth had a penchant for picking up on Jack’s lies, though it was much easier to do in person than in letters. Still, his whole story about his brother seemed far to suspicious for Elizabeth to believe.”

“Oh, yes, that is partly the reason I called upon you, you see, I am, infact, Ernest.”

Elizabeth, quite disbelieving of the authenticity of the statement, queried further. “I was under the suspicion that you were Jack.” 

“I was, now I am Ernest.” Elizabeth believed that he wasn’t quite living up to that name.  
“Well, how long have you been Ernest then?” Elizabeth asked, if this was a silly scheme of his then she would become quite cross with-

“Since birth!”

Elizabeth set down her cup and gave her friend an incredulous look. Her friend, Ernest, it now seemed, began to explain the circumstances of his name. “Do you know how I said that Mr. Cardew found me in a leather purse as a child?”

“You have told me multiple times without my request to know so, yes.” Elizabeth responded coyly. 

“Well, it seems that my birth name was in fact Ernest.” Jack explained after a brief bout of friendly indignation. 

“Well, that must be strange considering that Ernest is also your brother’s name” 

“Oh, yes, my brother Ernest doesn’t exist, I made him up” Elizabeth picked back up her tea cup and took a nonchalant sip. “You don’t seem quite so surprised as the others were.” 

A small smile stretched across Eliza’s lips, “Well, I’ve always known that you weren’t quite so honest about your ‘brother’, I was just under the impression that it was an excuse you used to visit town quite often.” 

“Sharp as always, Lizzy,” Jack, or Ernest, admitted with an equally small smile. “Oh, yes, did I tell you I am to wed?” 

“And you are just as silly as always, ‘Jack’.” Elizabeth responded in tow, “also, no, you did not, but I assume, given that revelation about your name, and my own experience with marriage, that this is part of the trouble that you mentioned?” 

“You have had your own trouble with marriages?” Jack inquired, and Elizabeth realized that she had never exactly told him the specifics of her own marriage, other than the fact that she was married. 

“It was a trifle, I met this man, Mr. Darcy, and despised him from the moment that I laid my eyes on him,” Eliza said with a fond look in her eye. 

“Well, that sounds like true love if I have ever heard it,” Jack said with a tone similar to Eliza’s previously coy comment. Although judging by her reaction, it seems as if Eliza agreed, or simply just ignored his statement when she said, “Oh it is, we’ve been together for years now, but, that is besides the point, tell me about your own troubles now.” 

“Well, I must tell you about my wife to be, Miss Fairfax.” Jack began, Eliza was sure that she had the name Fairfax before in some higher circle, but her memory seemed to fail her at that moment. “Unlike you, I loved that woman since I first laid my eyes on her, and I told her as such during my proposal.” It was Jack’s turn to gain his own fond look. 

“Surely no woman can accept a proposal on such a basis,” Elizabeth exclaimed, more out of incredulity than shock. 

“Well, you see, the reason she accepted my proposal is because my name was Ernest, but, you see, it was not then at the time.” 

Elizabeth bit back a remark about how it seemed that a silly man found a perfect match with a silly girl, however, it was one thing to insult a friend whom she had known for years, and another thing to insult a woman whom she had never met. The former was quite normal, while the latter was rude. However, she could not hold back a “Well, you both seem quite a bit prejudiced it seems when it comes to marriage.”

“This coming from the woman who hated her husband for…” Jack led on, expecting an answer that would prove his point, which he received. 

“For being mildly rude to me and my sister.” Elizabeth explained with a high air, a talent she had acquired after spending some time with Lady De-Bourgh. “In fairness to myself however, my sister is quite literally perfection incarnate.”

“I would relate, however, it seems that my brother is quite the opposite, I once saw him fishing out and eating a muffin that I threw away because he was hungry.” Elizabeth noted the displeased look on Jack’s face, however, her observations were overshadowed by the paradoxical nature of Jack’s statement.

“I believe you said that your brother, Ernest, did not exist.” She stated bluntly. 

“Oh yes, I haven’t explained that bit yet. I assume you ran into Mr. Moncrieff? Cecily told me she caught you just as he was leaving. Well you see, it has come to pass that he is my brother,” Elizabeth remembered the resemblance she had seen between the two men, “separated for quite some time it appears.” 

“Jack, I’ve been wrong in my assumptions, it seems to me that you are not indeed a silly man, but rather, a simply absurd one.” The two laughed and conversed more, before night fell and Elizabeth returned to her carriage and retired home, excited to recount her friend’s exploits to her husband.


End file.
